


Protect the Child

by Adagal



Category: Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door, Super Mario & Related Fandoms
Genre: Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Fluff, Found Family, Friendship, Gen, Nightmares, Random & Short, Short & Sweet, Short One Shot, Short Story, Will update tags as story continues, also the kid's name is gulp, everyone's just being a parent to the Yoshi kid
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-08
Updated: 2021-02-21
Packaged: 2021-03-13 10:27:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 6,705
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29276925
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Adagal/pseuds/Adagal
Summary: A collection of short stories of Mario and his other partners in TTYD being parental and protective of the Yoshi Kid. Might even cross over with other Paper Mario games ;)Have any ideas? Comment them, just keep em PG of course!
Relationships: everyone and the Yoshi kid
Comments: 1
Kudos: 6





	1. The Discovery

Mario and Goombella wandered into their waiting room in the Glitz Pit, tired and bruised. That fight with the Armored Harriers really didn’t go as well as they expected.

“Well, we did our best, right Mario?” Goombella panted. Mario gave a weak nod. Suddenly, a knock on the door alerted the two of them. Ms. Jolene entered, a comforting smile on her face.

“You did well, Mr. Gonzales,” she said. “Here’s your money. And as the rules say, your rank stays the same.”

Jolene passed Mario three coins, which the plumber pocketed in his overalls. She then bid the duo a farewell, and left the room.

Goombella took off her helmet and dunked her head into a small tub of water, usually a way to cool off and refresh for fighters who were short and didn’t have arms. Mario leaned against a wall and ate one of his Great Shrooms.

A few minutes passed while Mario and Goombella rested up, when Goombella looked around the room, realizing something was off.

“Hey Mario?” she asked. “That Yoshi egg we got earlier… I don’t see it around. Where’d it go?”

The duo looked around the room, but the multi colored egg wasn’t anywhere to be seen.

“You think someone took it?” Goombella questioned. Mario shrugged. The egg couldn’t have gone far, the room is normally locked unless someone’s leaving or entering, and even then security’s always there to escort the person.

“Hey!” a small voice called from the other end of the room. Mario and Goombella turned to see a small, blue Yoshi sitting on the bed. A grin on his face, he hopped off and walked up to the Goomba.

“Sup? You’re Goombella, right?” he asked her. Eyes wide and mouth agape, she slowly nodded. The Yoshi then turned to Mario.

“And you’re Gonzales! Hey, man! Thanks for keeping me safe! Seems like I hatched perfectly fine!”

“So you did hatch out of that egg?” Goombella exclaimed. The Yoshi nodded.

“Yep! And I heard everything about how you guys are fighting to win that Crystal Star! I wanna help! Lemme fight with you! Consider it a token of my thanks for saving me from becoming a hot dog! Come on, Gonzales! I can gulp down any enemy like the best of em!”

Mario looked at Goombella and shrugged. Goombella turned to the Yoshi.

“Well, for starters, what’s your name?” she asked. The child put a hand to his chin, thinking hard.

“You know, I don’t think I have one. I just hatched after all. You know what? Why don’t you guys come up with a name for me? Make it good, ok?”

The Yoshi sat down quickly, smiling eagerly at the duo. Goombella and Mario looked at each other worriedly. Looked like they had no choice now.

“What would fit him?” Goombella thought out loud. “He’s kinda cute, but also seems like a fiery fighter. He’s blue, pink hair…. You got any ideas, Mario?”

Mario rubbed his chin, deep in thought. The child did say he wanted to help fight, and he could gulp down the other fighters. Mario wasn’t sure if that last part was allowed in the Glitz Pit, but it did give him an idea. He made a few gestures to Goombella, asking for a piece of paper and a pen. The Goomba nodded and pulled some paper and pens out from her bag, handing one to Mario. Using Goombella’s helmet as a hard surface, Mario scribbled down a name and handed it to the Yoshi. The child looked at it, his eyes sparkling.

“Gulp? Hey, I like it! That’s a sick name, Gonzales! Thanks a million! Now let’s go and kick some butt!” Gulp grinned, pocketing the piece of paper in his shorts, and jumped to Mario’s side.

“Well, before you guys get started, why don’t we take a moment to figure out your moves?” Goombella asked, pulling out a book. “What’s your fighting moves? How can you help Mario?”

Gulp sat down next to Goombella and explained some of his moves he was able to do, like floating in the air with Mario on his back, ground pounding, and the aforementioned swallowing enemies. When they finished, Goombella stepped off to the side and wished Mario and Gulp “Good luck out there!”. A new sense of determination on his face, Mario walked up to the match panel and pressed the button. Grubba’s face popped up in seconds.

“Hey, Gonzales! Looking for your next match?”


	2. Fireside Chat

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gulp just wants to take his mind off of some things. Takes place during chapter 5

Gulp sat up in his sleeping bag, his eyes bloodshot. He had been trying to sleep for hours, but no matter how much he twisted and turned, he couldn’t sleep.

He looked to his side to see Koops sound asleep in the sleeping bag next to him. _At least one of us is getting shuteye,_ he thought.

So he could at least have something to do so late at night, Gulp sneaked outside of the tent, hoping no one else was up to notice him. He stepped outside to feel the tropical breeze of Keelhaul Key on his face, and the moon shining brightly above him. It sucked. Normally, he didn’t mind tropical islands, but this one had a much more creepy tone to it, especially considering they were looking for the treasure of a pirate ghost.

Then again, they didn’t have much choice to stay. Flavio’s ship crashed, and it wasn’t like they could just leave the island. And while they had begun to set up some makeshift accommodations on the Key, who knew how long it would be before they could leave? Just the thought of it was enough to fill Gulp with dread.

He shook his head, shaking off the bad feeling. He really needed to do something to take his mind off of this. Perhaps a run around the island would help.

Gulp did a few leg stretches and twists, then he took off. He started at a jog, then started running faster. Soon, he could hear nothing but his feet pounding on the grass and sand. He ran past the camp on the beach, past his friends’ tents, and headed into the jungle. The wildlife snored and snoozed as he dashed by, unaware of the Yoshi in their midst.

Suddenly, Gulp tripped and landed on a rock with a loud thud. Combined with the low growl of a Piranha Plant, he knew he was in for some trouble. He looked down to see he had tripped over the plant’s vine, and judging by the amount of pain in his ankle, he was sure he’d sprained something and wouldn’t be able to run away any time soon.

The Piranha Plant opened its maw, its teeth dripping and shiny. It stared at Gulp up and down, ready to enjoy this delicious meal, when…

A bright fire circled the plant and sent it up in flames before Gulp’s eyes. The plant also emitted a loud screech, making Gulp cover his ears and squeeze his eyes shut.

When the fire cleared out, leaving nothing but ash behind, Gulp uncovered his ears and opened his eyes, seeing a dark purple face frowning at him, her light pink hair all frazzled and messy.

“Vivian?” he whimpered. The Shadow Siren adjusted her gloves before addressing the Yoshi.

“What are you doing out here?”

“I… wait, what are you doing here?”

“I heard yelling and Piranha Plant noises coming from the jungle. I’m a light sleeper. I also noticed you were gone from your tent, so I wanted to see if you were ok. Are you?”

Gulp looked down at his feet, leaning heavily on the rock. “I uh, I dunno. I think I hurt my ankle…”

Vivian bent down and gently held the Yoshi’s foot. He winced in pain. Vivian sighed.

“You may have twisted it. At worst, you sprained it. We’ll wrap it up for the time being, get you something to eat, and get you healed first thing in the morning.” She picked up Gulp and carried him away from the now dead Piranha Plant.

“By the way, you still never answered my question, Gulp. Why were you out in the jungle?”

Gulp groaned a little before he answered. “I couldn’t sleep.” 

“So you went into the jungle? Alone?”

“I just wanted to run and clear my head.”

Vivian just nodded. “That’s understandable. Just maybe don’t go so far next time, alright? None of us would want to lose you, Mario especially.”

“You’re… not too mad?”

“If I’m being honest, not at all. Just be thankful I came to rescue you and not say, Flurrie.” Vivian chuckled at her sentence. Gulp seemed less than amused.

“Can you still not sleep?” the Shadow Siren proceeded to ask, shifting Gulp around in her arms. The Yoshi yawned, though he answered with a “not really”. 

Vivian hummed in a low tone as she walked up to the campfire, which was currently out. The Shadow Siren set the child down on a log and stood over the fire pit. With a flick of her hands, the sticks and twigs lit up, at first so hot that Gulp could feel it all over his body, but then dropped to a slight warmth, one that made Gulp almost feel at home, or like he was roasting marshmallows with all his friends. When she was satisfied, Vivian sat down on a log next to the Yoshi, smiling.

“Feel any better yet?” she asked. Gulp nodded.

“That’s good to hear. I can steal a mushroom for you if you’re hungry.”

“That’d be nice.”

Vivian stood up and headed over to the tents on the beach, Gulp watched her as she sank into the ground near Mario and Goombella’s tent, disappearing for a few minutes. It gave Gulp enough time to think about Vivian, and how she was being so nice to him. She didn’t yell at him for sneaking out at night, she made him a fire since he couldn’t sleep, and now she was getting him a midnight snack. It started to make him even more guilty about his words towards her when they first encountered each other. Soon enough, Vivian returned with two mushrooms, placing one in Gulp’s palm.

“Let’s eat,” she said, proceeding to bite down on her snack. The Yoshi did the same, finishing it in seconds, while the Shadow Siren took smaller bites, and finished hers in a minute or two. As there was nothing else to do, the duo simply looked up at the sky, at all the stars, the moon... then Gulp broke the silence.

“Hey, Vivian? I just wanted to apologize, for being really mean to you. Back when we first met. I knew you were a Shadow Siren, and I thought you were going to hurt Gonzales, but then we found out you teamed up with Gonzales and the Gonzales we were with was a fake, but I still didn’t trust you even though everyone else did, and I said really mean things to you, and…” Gulp continued to ramble for a few minutes longer, Vivian staring, not speaking, as he did so, eventually watching him break down into tears. Vivian reached over and slowly patted him on the back.

“Hey, uh, it’s alright Gulp. Yeah, Gulp? Yeah. Thanks for apologizing. I… don’t think I’ve ever had anyone apologize to me like that before. You’re a sweet kid, I was honestly more surprised than upset at what you said.”

“W-what? Why?” Gulp sniffled.

“I was shocked that someone your age even knew that kind of vocabulary right from the get go. How old are you, anyway?”

“A month, I think. Yoshis tend to grow somewhat faster than one might realize. At least, that’s what Goombella says.”

“Ah. That makes a little more sense. But still, how did you know those hurtful things? Who taught you that? What kind of family did you have?”

Gulp leaned more against Vivian, rubbing away at his eyes before he answered. “I never really had a family. Not a Yoshi one at least. I was stolen as an egg to be made into a hot dog in Glitzville. Then Gonzales and Goombella found me and kept me safe with them until I hatched. They were kinda busy battling for the Crystal Star though, so I bided my time listening to the other fighters chat. That’s how I learned to smack talk.”

“Oh. It really does make sense now,” Vivian said quietly. “One more question though. Why do you keep calling Mario as Gonzales?”

“That’s the only name I’ve ever known him by. He was known as the Great Gonzales in Glitzville. The undefeated champion, the merciless executioner! I’ve always looked up to him more as Gonzales than Mario anyway. Besides, it might be a little odd to start calling him Mario now. He’s ok with it though, so it’s all good.”

Vivian nodded. “Wow. I… don’t really know what to say now. That’s certainly… an interesting story of yours.”

“Thanks for being here, Vivian,” Gulp said. “For company. And not being mad at me for running off.”

From behind her hair, Vivian’s eyes widened. “Uh, no problem Gulp.” She then started to yawn, Gulp did too. “Goodness me, it’s getting late. Let’s head back into the tents now, shall we? We’ll get you fixed up first thing tomorrow. And if anyone asks, you stepped outside for a bathroom break and tripped over a tree root. You asked me to help you.” 

Gulp nodded, liking the plan. Vivian really was cool, wasn’t she?


	3. The Big Surprise

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> All the TTYD partners travel to the Mushroom Kingdom to surprise Mario and Peach. Gulp really doesn't wanna wear a tuxedo.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If anyone's curious, I based the layout of the Mushroom Kingdom on how it's designed in the original Paper Mario, as well as one or two other things ;)

“Come on Gulp, at least wear the jacket!” Koops pleaded, holding a white dress shirt and dark green jacket over his arm. The Yoshi child sat down on the boat deck, his arms crossed and back turned.

Everyone had gathered to travel to the Mushroom Kingdom from Rogueport for the Princess’ Gala. They hoped it would be a huge surprise for Mario and Princess Peach. Then again, they all got invitations, so they were most likely expected to show up. But they hoped it would be a big surprise either way.

Flurrie was busy styling Goombella’s hair, Vivian was chatting with Bobbery as he sailed the boat, and Koops was trying to convince Gulp to at least wear a tuxedo for when they arrived.

“I won’t wear that! I’m gonna sweat in that thing!” Gulp pouted.

“Come on, it’s a formal gathering!” Koops explained. “Tons of people are gonna be looking fancy like this for when the princesses gather. It’s only polite, ya know?”

“Suits are so constricting though!”

“You wouldn’t have to wear the shirt if we can button up the jacket! I won’t even try to make you wear the bow tie, please!”

“I won’t wear it! You couldn’t have gotten me like, a polo shirt or something? I’m technically three years old, ya know!”

“Don’t blame me! Flurrie and Mowz went shopping for formalwear for all of us and picked this for you! Yell at them if you’re so mad!”

Gulp didn’t even fight back, he simply sat back down and turned away from Koops. The Koopa Troopa groaned in anger.

“Everything well over here?” Flurrie waltzed over, noticing the tension between the two. Koops shoved Gulp’s outfit in the woman’s arms.

“I can’t get him to wear this thing, you try reasoning with him!” he grumbled before walking off to chat with Goombella. Flurrie stared into space, wide eyed at what just happened in the last few seconds. Then she looked down at Gulp, who was still sulking on the floor.

“Oh Gulp dear, please at least wear this outfit by the time we arrive at the Mushroom Kingdom. Please?” she requested. Gulp sneered at her, but answered with a “maybe”. Flurrie gave a gentle smile.

“That’s all I wanted to know,” she said before leaving the Yoshi to his own devices. Koops stared at her as she left, utterly shocked.

“She’s got the magic touch,” Goombella commented, smirking. The Koopa Troopa made a hand motion across his throat that screamed “don’t you dare say another word about this”. Goombella giggled a little before shutting up.

Even though they left in the early morning for the Mushroom Kingdom, it wasn’t until the start of dusk that they finally arrived.

“We’re here!” Bobbery exclaimed, hopping off the boat with Vivian so they could tie the boat to the port.

When the boat was secure, everyone filed out onto the docks, happy to finally have reached land.

“Come along now, the castle is this way!” Goombella said, holding out the invitation, which gave the instructions on how to get to Peach’s Castle. Everyone followed closely behind her as they walked past the fishing docks, then through the lower part of town, that Gulp called the “Good Smelling Part”, mainly for the chef’s house that was nearby.

After a little more walking, the gang arrived at the town square, with a post office, flower gardens, and what everyone assumed was a fortune teller’s house on the left. Right up ahead was the gate to Peach’s castle.

“This way guys!” Goombella sang, rushing towards the door as it swung open for the group. Flurrie carried Gulp to the main gate, his outfit over her shoulder.

“Gulp dearie, I think we’ve waited long enough. It’s time to wear your little outfit, ok?” she asked. But when she looked down in her arms, Gulp was half asleep. Flurrie smirked to herself, this was the best opportunity she would get, given Gulp’s stubborn tendencies.

* * *

Gulp was apprehensive at first to travel to the Mushroom Kingdom. From what he read in Goombella and Prof. Frankly’s books, it was a huge place, and much different than Rogueport in numerous ways. He’d never been out on the ocean to another place before, save for that one time he and Gonzales traveled to Keelhaul Key. But even then, this was far gone from a deserted island. 

He protested going at first to the others, but they convinced him with the promise he wouldn’t have to talk to anyone, and they’d be with him the entire time. That, and he could eat all the food he wanted. The only problem then was that the invitation said the gala was a “formal event”, which meant wearing stuffy clothing against his will. Oh how he dreaded when the moment finally arrived.

While Flurrie carried him to the castle, he decided to take his mind off his worries by dozing off. It was starting to get late anyway, and they all had to wake up early if they wanted to leave for the Mushroom Kingdom on time. But when he opened his eyes again, he was wearing the tuxedo that Flurrie and Mowz had gotten him.

Gulp groaned loudly. Flurrie sighed. If she didn’t say something fast, Gulp would already start taking off the clothes.

“Listen, dear,” she said. “I believe I remember Koops saying he wouldn’t even make you wear the shirt if you wore the jacket. Would you do that for me?” Gulp frowned at her, one hand already on the top buttons, but mumbled an “ok”.

“Good. Let’s fix you up then.” Flurrie set the Yoshi child down on the ground, allowing the others to pass them while she removed the dress shirt and buttoned up the jacket. Slyly, she also tightened the bow tie a little around his neck.

“Hey, hey!” Gulp snapped, fixing the bow tie on his own. Flurrie shrugged and gestured for him to follow her into the castle.

Peach’s Castle looked so much more gorgeous than Gulp had seen in photos and postcards. The red and white stone set such a pretty hue against the setting sun, and the flower gardens smelled so beautiful. The inside was so grandiose also, soft yet upbeat music playing in the background, colorful tablecloths on polished tables, filled with different snack foods. Gulp couldn’t help but lick his lips at the sight of it.

“Mario! Princess Peach! Guess who’s here?” Goombella announced. Two men in tuxedos and red and green caps turned around at the sound of her voice. The one in the red hat stared at the Goomba for a few seconds, then his face lit up. He laughed excitedly and ran to meet the Rogueporters, the man in the green hat offering to hold both their drinks.

“So happy to see you again, Mario!” Vivian squealed. “How’ve you been after so long?”

“The Mushroom Kingdom is so cool!” Koops commented.

“This castle is stunning!” Ms. Mowz sang.

Gulp walked over to a wall and leaned against it, bored already with the gala. He wasn’t fit for fancy stuff like this. Who could he even talk to? What would he say?

To his luck, Luigi seemed to see him all alone and walked over to talk to him.

“Hey, Gulp, right?” he greeted. Gulp nodded. Luigi smiled.

“Nice to see you and the others made it! I’m sure you’re excited to see Princess Peach and the other princesses tonight.”

“I honestly just wanna go home,” Gulp sighed, shuffling his feet. “I belong in the Glitz Pit, not here wearing stuffy clothes.”

“Eh, I feel ya kid,” Luigi chuckled. “Between you and me, I’m not too keen on large social events either, though I tend to tag along with Mario to a lot of these anyways, heh heh.

“On the bright side, Mario told me the Princess told him that the event should start any-

“And now, Princess Peach!” a Toad guard shouted, quieting the guests. Luigi chuckled.

“Speak of the devil,” he whispered.

Princess Peach stepped out of the door, two other ladies at her sides. One had tan skin and short, brown hair, with a orange-yellow dress. The other had pale skin and long, blond hair that fell over one eye, and a light blue dress. She held a wand in one hand and from the look of it, she was also hovering an inch above the ground.

“Thanks everyone for attending this gala tonight,” Peach declared. “From the Mushroom Kingdom and all the surrounding territories, to the distant harbors of Rogueport, we welcome you all with open arms tonight.” Everyone applauded.

“We also must be ever so grateful for our extra special guests who stand with me now. Princess Daisy of Sarasaland, and Princess Rosalina of the Cosmos.” Peach gestured to each lady as she announced them, to which they curtsied happily.

“Now, let the celebration commence!” the three princesses cheered. Everyone raised either a glass or a fist, or in Goombella’s case, jumped up and down excitedly.

“Well, I’m gonna chat with some more people, Gulp. Care to join me?” Luigi asked. Gulp looked up at the plumber, and shook his head. Luigi shrugged and walked off, bidding the Yoshi a farewell.

Gulp ended up falling asleep due to boredom and it getting late outside. Why did he even come in the first place? He was a kid! What was anyone even thinking?

“Hey, are you a Yoshi too?” A small child’s voice woke Gulp up yet again from his slumber. A green Yoshi child stared right into Gulp’s eyes. He yelped and smushed his back against the wall.

“Hey, you are a Yoshi!” the child exclaimed. “Where are you from? What’s your name? I’m Geo!”

Gulp had to stop breathing so shallowly to process what was being said to him. Finally, he managed to answer Geo’s question.

“Hi, yes, uh… I’m Gulp. I’m from Glitzville, kinda far from here. Nice to meet you. Haven’t seen another kid here at all until now.”

“Me too!” Geo agreed. “I came here with my dads. My papa over there is the leader of our village.” He pointed to two green Yoshis chatting with a couple of female Toads. One Yoshi was much chubbier than the other, and wore a flower crown of many kinds of flowers, as well as a red tie around his neck. The Yoshi next to him also wore a tie, as well as beaded bracelets. Gulp stared at them and nodded understandingly.

“Cool. Where’s your guys’ village, anyway?”

“Far from here. We had to travel by whale to get here.”

“Did that take long?”

“Not at all! How far away is Glitzville?”

“It’s in the sky, you gotta take a blimp just to get to the nearest town. And from that town, it’s a long boat trip to the Mushroom Kingdom. Funny enough, I’ve actually never been here before.”

“That’s so neat! This is only my second time being here! The first was when Princess Peach invited us all to celebrate Mario defeating Bowser after he kidnapped the princess!”

“That’s cool I guess.” Gulp smiled along with Geo’s infectious smile. The two continued to talk for an hour, until Vivian alerted the blue Yoshi that it was time to leave, it was getting late. The two Yoshis bid each other farewell, and Gulp wandered to the castle doors to wait with Vivian for the others.

“Thank you all for coming!” Peach addressed the Rogueporters as they started to leave.

“It was so cool to meet all you guys!” Princess Daisy cheered, shaking hands with Mowz.

“I’m glad we could have this celebration together,” Princess Rosalina smiled warmly.

“Bye guys!” Luigi said, waving goodbye. Mario waved goodbye beside him.

As everyone walked back to the docks to head back to Rogueport, Vivian scooped up a sleepy Gulp and asked him how he enjoyed the gala.

“It was kinda boring,” the Yoshi yawned, “but I made a friend. I think. He’s a Yoshi from a village on Lavalava Island.”

“Oh? That’s nice. Maybe you’ll see him again if we ever come back here,” Vivian said.

“I hope I do,” Gulp whispered before falling asleep for the third time. Vivian giggled a little. At least Gulp enjoyed himself.


	4. Just A Dream

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gulp has a bad dream

Gulp stretched out his arms and legs in the waiting room of the major league. Another day, another round of fighting for the viewing pleasure of Glitzville and all its visitors. He already had his chat with Ms. Jolene, so now he just had to wait for a guard to escort him to the ring. He was ready and raring to go!

“Gonzales Jr, time for your fight. This way,” a security guard said, poking his head in the door. Gulp twisted around, cracking his back, then joined the guard out the door. They walked down the hall for a bit until they reached the door to the arena. Hundreds of screaming fans could be heard just beyond the door, and Gulp wouldn’t have it any other way. The door suddenly, opened, and he ran out to the ring.

“First up, we have Gonzales Jr!” Jolene announced, gesturing to the blue Yoshi. Gulp had his arms in the air, grinning from ear to ear as he stepped into the ring.

“And over here, we have a surprise contestant. Coming back for another fight, the Great Gonzales!” Jolene gestured to the other side of the room, which included a very angry looking Mario as he stepped into the ring as well.

“Gonzales? I didn’t know we were fighting! What’s up?” Gulp greeted. Mario didn’t respond, he just looked at Gulp, malice in his eyes.

“Let the battle begin!” Jolene said, hopping out of the ring. The music started up, the fight had begun.

Gulp raised his fists, a little nervous now. On the bright side, his turn was first. He jumped into the air and ground pounded onto Mario’s head. To his surprise, Mario blocked the hit.

Mario now ran up to the Yoshi and leapt into the air. He jumped on Gulp, and again. Gulp did his best to defend himself, but the attacks still hurt. This was odd, why was Mario so angry at him? Why was he attacking so harshly?

“Hey Gonzales, something up? You get dumped by Peach or something? We can chat this out, I just wanna know why you look so angry,” Gulp tried to reason.

Mario took out his hammer and threw it in the air, landing squarely on Gulp’s head. The Yoshi cried out in pain and slapped his hands on his head, hoping to subside the pain. Mario didn’t react.

“Gonzales! I know this is a match, but that actually hurt! What’s going on with you, man?” Gulp cried out. Before he could even take his turn on Mario, Mario jumped on Gulp again. Horrified, the Yoshi turned to where Jolene stood to see if she was going to stop this. She didn’t move.

Before Mario could do anything else, Gulp tried another ground pound on Mario’s head. He dodged it yet again.

“Gonzales! What’s going on?” Gulp yelled, tears edging at his eyes. Mario didn’t answer, he ran up to Gulp and jumped on him again. Unable to take the pain, Gulp fell to the ground.

“Ok, ok, you win. You win!” Gulp said, his throat tightening with each word he made. Mario acted as though he couldn’t hear the Yoshi, and ran up again, hammer poised over his head. Then he slammed it down.

* * *

Gulp shot up, his cheeks wet with tears. It was just a nightmare, but it still felt so real. He looked around to see he was in his sleeping bag in a tent. The sounds of Keelhaul Key could be heard outside, and Koops was in the sleeping bag next to him.

Gulp felt his head, just to make sure he really was ok. It seemed fine, but there was one spot that hurt so much he started crying all over again. Koops opened his eyes to see the Yoshi distressed.

“Whoa whoa!” he whispered, sitting up. “What happened, Gulp?”

Gulp wiped his eyes, then stared at Koops.

“I was going to fight at the Glitz Pit and then I saw Gonzales and he was really mad and started attacking me but I couldn’t fight back and he kept hurting me and he hurt my head really bad but then I woke up and realized it was a bad dream but then I felt my head and it hurts in one spot where Gonzales hurt me in my dream and now I’m scared what if Gonzales actually hurt me and it wasn’t a dream?” Gulp broke down crying into Koops’ hoodie after that.

“Hey, it’s alright kid,” the Koopa Troopa reassured. “It’s over now. You’re here, and you’re ok. Just let it out.”

Gulp only sobbed harder now, clutching Koops’ shirt in his small fists. Koops wrapped Gulp in a hug, rubbing his back slowly while telling him it was all ok now. When Gulp had no more tears left, Koops asked him,

“Does that spot on your head still hurt?”

Gulp felt the top of his head. “No,” he sniffed.

“See? It’s all better! Sometimes that just kinda happens in dreams. I once had a dream where it felt like I was in a rocket going to the moon. It was a lot of pressure put on my body. When I woke up, I still felt the pressure for a few minutes, but it went away once I got out of bed,” the Koopa Troopa explained.

Gulp opened his mouth to say something, but a furious cough was let out instead. Koops chuckled.

“Now, if you think you can, we should probably get back to sleep, ok?”

Gulp nodded. Koops stretched his arms out and shuffled back into his sleeping bag to sleep, but when he moved his arms around again, he felt Gulp tucked in right next to him. Koops opened his mouth to say something at first, to tell Gulp he should go back to his own sleeping bag, but after the night they just had, Koops didn’t have any complaints in him. He wrapped Gulp in a hug again and rested his eyes.

“Sweet dreams, kid,” he mumbled before drifting off.


	5. I Scream, You Scream, We All Scream, We Need Throat Drops

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Secret plot for ice cream. Gulp has the time of his life.

It was a normal, boring day in Petalburg. Koops had gone out picking flowers with his girlfriend Koopie Koo, Mario was napping under a tree with Gulp, and Goombella and Vivian were reading under the other side of the tree. Suddenly, there was a cheery tune from far away. Everyone shot up from what they were doing. In a matter of seconds, even Koops and Koopie Koo were back from flower picking.

“Ice cream!” Gulp shouted.

Everyone rushed to the entrance to Petalburg to await the ice cream truck’s arrival. Unfortunately, the second it got to the gates, the tires on the truck popped, and the truck fell flat, the cheery tune also growing depressing and slow.

“Aw man,” Koops grumbled. Koopie rubbed her boyfriend’s back, a comforting smile on her face.

The mouse driving the truck stepped out, throwing his hat onto his seat. “Sorry guys,” he said, “Nothing today. Not until I get these tires filled and fixed again. I’m gonna chat with the mayor and see if he can help.”

As the mouse walked past everyone, the gang sighed and stared at the grass. Mario stared at the truck, then at the mouse, then back at the truck. He rubbed his chin thoughtfully, then gasped. He had an idea. Quickly, he dashed to the truck and looked at the driver’s door. The key was still there.

“Mario? What are you doing?” Vivian asked. Mario didn’t answer, instead he opened the door and went through to the back of the truck. With a slam, he opened the sliding door to the inside of the ice cream section, the ice cream mouse’s hat over his own red cap.

“Haha!” Mario laughed. Everyone stared up at Mario with shock.

“Wow Mario, you really gave no darns there, did ya?” Goombella joked.

“Didn’t know you could ever do something like this Gonzales!” Gulp said. “Can I help with the ice cream?” Mario nodded.

With Vivian’s help, Gulp was lifted to the truck, and Mario placed a smaller ice cream hat on the Yoshi’s head.

“Woo! Ice cream time!” Gulp cheered.

“What is there to eat, you two?” Koopie Koo asked.

Mario and Gulp searched around the truck, when they found a soft serve machine. Gulp chuckled mischievously.

“Got any cones?” he asked Mario.

The plumber fiddled around in another case next to the machine, and pulled out three waffle cones. Gulp looked down to where Mario had pulled them from.

“There’s more too!” he exclaimed. “We got ice cream for real, guys!”

Everyone cheered as Mario pulled the lever of the soft serve machine over the waffle cone, filling it up with a sweet vanilla swirl. When he felt there was enough, he stopped and gave it to Gulp, who topped it with caramel sauce and rainbow sprinkles, then set it in a cone holder on the counter of the truck. Quickly, Vivian reached up to grab it, and took a small lick.

“Oh goodness me, this is so good!” she squealed.

Mario gave a cheerful thumbs up, then turned back to the soft serve machine, grabbing another cone to fill.

It was a two person assembly line, with Mario grabbing and filling the waffle cones with vanilla ice cream, then passing it to Gulp for toppings and placement for someone to eat. At first, it was just Mario’s friends, but then the rest of town had smelled the sweet cones, and suddenly all of Petalburg, save for the ice cream mouse and the mayor, were gathered for ice cream. One Koopa even showed up wielding a traffic cone for his soft serve!

When everyone in Petalburg finally had a cone, Mario grabbed one for himself, took off his ice cream hat, and hopped out of the truck, closing the window to join Goombella and the others.

Meanwhile still in the truck, Gulp popped out of a box, a jar of rainbow sprinkles in his hand.

“Hey, I found more sprinkles- Gonzales?” He looked around, the truck was empty and the doors were closed.

“Where’d he go?” Gulp asked. He climbed out of the box and stood in the middle of the truck. He tapped his foot impatiently.

“Gonzales! Koops! Anyone?” Gulp started to get nervous, but then his eyes rested on the soft serve machine. If Gonzales wasn’t here to stop him, that meant he could have as much ice cream as he wanted. Excited, he leapt up to the table where the machine rested and pulled down on the level. Unfortunately, it didn’t budge, so he tried harder. Still nothing, but when Gulp pulled down as hard as he could, using his long tongue, the level snapped down, and a wave of ice cream gushed out.

Back in town, Mario and his friends all sat under a tree now, licking away at their cones. Koops and Koopie Koo shared one, looking at each other romantically as they did so, with Goombella grinning and rolling her eyes nearby.

“Man, this was such a great idea Mario,” Vivian grinned, wiping a smudge off her cheek. “You and Gulp both did a great job. Nice job, Gulp!” Vivian turned to her other side, but Gulp wasn’t sitting there.

“Gulp? Gulp?” Both Vivian and Mario looked around frantically, but the Yoshi child wasn’t there.

“AhhhhhAHHHHH! Everyone! Gulp’s gone!” Vivian shouted.

“Where could he have run off to?” Koops thought out loud. “He was having ice cream with us, he couldn’t have gone far.”

“Well, where was the last place he was at?” Koopie Koo asked. In unanimous answer, everyone looked at the ice cream truck, currently shaking and rumbling lowly.

“Uh oh!” Goombella shouted, already dashing up to open the window of the truck, only to see a wall of vanilla soft serve on the other side, as well as Gulp pressed against it.

“Heh, hi guys,” he said, before the soft serve flooded out of the truck and all over everyone.

“Ugh, gross! Now my clothes are gonna get all sticky…” Koopie Koo lamented.

“It’s just ice cream though! It can be washed out, right?” Koops reassured.

“More important than that, is Gulp ok?” Vivian asked, wringing out her hat.

“I’m right here!” A tiny, blue fist punched out from a small mound of ice cream, which was then swallowed up by the Yoshi. He looked out at everyone giving him less than pleased expressions.

“Hey, there was ice cream, so I wanted ice cream,” Gulp tried to explain.

“Guys! They’re gonna be out here any second, so let’s clean up!” a Koopa Troopa exclaimed. Hurriedly, everyone dashed around to grab anything that would scoop up the ice cream; a shovel, a bucket, and then it was dumped each down Gulp’s pie hole or into the warp pipe to Hooktail’s Castle. Soon enough, t all vanished, along with the majority of Petalburg citizens, just as the mayor and the ice cream mouse stepped outside the mayor’s house, an air pump in the mouse’s hand.

“Thanks for all the help, sir,” he said. “The tea was lovely too.”

“Not a problem, my friend! Anything to help the community,” the mayor wheezed. The two of them stopped in front of Mario and the others, standing in front of the ice cream truck with cheesed on smiles.

“What’s up everyone?” the mouse addressed the crowd.

“Nothing! At all! Just wanted to watch the truck for you!” Koops shouted.

“Oh, good. Thank you all, I’m happy to give you guys some ice cream for your troubles.”

“No, no! It’s not necessary, sir,” Goombella said.

The mouse walked up to his tires, pushing past Goombella and Mario. “Well, you’re all free to go back to whatever you were doing then.” Slowly, everyone shuffled away, back to the tree as the mouse refilled his tires.

“Well, that certainly was an adventure, Mario,” Vivian whispered. Mario nodded in agreement, then he felt a slight nudge on his arm. He looked over to see Gulp playing with his fingers.

“Hey, I just wanted to say sorry for worrying you guys, Gonzales,” the Yoshi apologized. “I didn’t mean for the ice cream to flood either.” He then pulled out a red popsicle. “You want this?”

Mario grinned and took the popsicle, rustling Gulp’s hair. He stuck the watermelon flavored treat in his mouth and slumped down the tree, taking a well earned nap with Gulp at his side.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> bonus points for anyone who guesses the show and/or its episode I stole this plot from


End file.
